DEP out of control

my water/sewer bill of $ 180 per month seemed very high to me (for 0 water consumption).
After inquiring in person at the DEP, they told me that this is not a frontage plan, but a fixed rate, and that according to them I took over this plan when I bought the house.

Right away I applied for automated reader metering, which is the only way to get out of this flat rate. (The lady at DEP was trying to promote it: “think about it, you can have as many leaks as you want, and water your backyard all day long!”)
We also opened a bill dispute with the DEP for past charges, but never heard back from them about it

Anyway, on the day the meter installer was supposed to come, he never showed up. The person at the DEP never called back on 5 messages for a new appointment, then I forgot about this matter.

Now today I received a new bill. They charge for the upcoming year ahead, and instead of 180 per month it now seems to be 400/ month for no obvious reason. The bill reads as follows:

Rate: Multifamily Conservation Program Fixed Rate
Billable items 5 From 7/1/12 To 6/30/13 Days 365
Water Charge: $ 1,726.16
Sewer Charge: $ 2,744.59

That totals to $ 4.500 per year for an empty building with no water consumption at all.
Does anyone have any idea what´s the best way to approach this?

Augustiner

in Sewer 13 years ago

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Augustiner | 13 years ago

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I called DEP today.
It turns out the result of my personal visit 4 months ago was, that the friendly lady re-assessed my house from a 3 family to a 5 family and the flat fee almost TRIPLED without further notice. And that was after I explained that I have only one faucet in the building. If that´s not out of control then what.
So I made an appointment for inspection and hope they will show up before July so that I won´t have to pay this made up bill.
Watch your water bill before they get you.

Bklnite | 13 years ago

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DEP has been pushing people towards metered billing for years. Your customer service experiences may have been bad, but $4500/year for a 5 family doesn’t seem unreasonable as a way to encourage people to go with metered billing as an incentive not to waste water. I would get on the phone right now and get it taken care of. Don’t leave messages, call back if you don’t get a live person, and go in to the office if you can’t get it done on the phone.

cupolacoffee | 13 years ago

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You forgot the matter, but DEP’s the one that’s out of control? ROTFLMAO. DEP has customer service offices in each borough. In Brooklyn their office is at 250 Livingston Street, 8th floor — nyc.gov/html/dep/html/customer_assistance/customer_service.shtml